IN MEMORY - BERNICE MCCABE

IN MEMORY

North London Collegiate School remembers former Headmistress, Bernice McCabe OBE (1952 - 2019)

On Friday 8th November 2019 over 2000 guests gathered at St Paul’s Cathedral for a Memorial Service to celebrate the life of our former Headmistress, Bernice McCabe OBE. The service was attended by Mrs McCabe’s close friends and family, NLCS students and staff – both past and present – along with Governors, representatives from NLCS Schools in South Korea and Dubai, The Prince’s Teaching Institute, and HRH The Prince of Wales.

During the service, Headmistress, Sarah Clark, gave a very moving tribute, which began with the fitting quote “The best evidence for her work for the world is that it will go on, even though the active brain and the busy hand are still”, which was written after the passing of our founder Frances Mary Buss nearly 125 years ago. The service was an extremely moving and a most appropriate way to commemorate Mrs McCabe’s extraordinary achievements and the inspirational leadership that she gave to NLCS during her 20 years of Headship.

In a final tribute, NLCS launched The Bernice McCabe Bursary Fund. NLCS is extremely proud of the fundraising that we do in order to facilitate so many bursary places, and to see firsthand how transformational a gift towards a bursary can be. We feel certain that Mrs McCabe would be delighted to know that this Fund is in place and will hopefully be supported by many; her fundamental belief was that every girl should be given the opportunity of an outstanding education, irrespective of financial background and we will work hard to ensure that her belief will be upheld for many generations of North Londoner’s to come.

A short time after the service at St Paul’s Cathedral took place, students and staff gathered in the grounds at Canons to watch the unveiling of a permanent memorial to Mrs McCabe. It is an armillary sundial, which overlooks the Chandos Beauty roses that Mrs McCabe always enjoyed seeing from her study window. Soon after she arrived at Canons in September 1997, Mrs McCabe mentioned that she had always loved sundials, objects of beauty which silently remeasure time through the passing of the seasons. Inscribed on the sphere are the final lines from a short poem, ‘For Katrina’s Sundial’ by Henry van Dyke: ‘…for those who love, time is Eternity.’ This poem, which Mrs McCabe had always found moving and uplifting, was read at the ceremony. In the years to come, we shall watch the sunlight falling on the sundial in this garden at Canons and remember Mrs McCabe with immense gratitude and love.